Seoul, Sep 29 — The chief of South Korea's antitrust watchdog said on Tuesday he will work to "restore justice" after a local court recently cleared the way for the agency to resume its stalled probe into U.S.-listed e-commerce giant Coupang.
Ju Biung-ghi, head of the Fair Trade Commission (FTC), made the remarks during an interview with local radio broadcaster CBS, signalling the agency's intention to resume its investigation, reports Yonhap news agency.
Last month, Coupang refused to cooperate with the watchdog's on-site probe into allegations the company had shifted the costs of discounts onto its suppliers and asked a court to suspend the inspection.
The court initially granted a temporary suspension of the FTC's on-site inspection but eventually rejected Coupang's request to halt the probe last week.
"(Coupang) deals with various vendors, and the company could be subject to regulatory action if it has imposed unfavourable terms on them," Ju said.
"It is a relief the judge handling the case ruled in favour of the public interest, including the rights of the economically vulnerable and hundreds of thousands of small merchants," he added. "We will continue to make efforts to restore justice undermined by the stalled probe into Coupang."
At a press conference this month, Ju described the court's disruption of the FTC's investigation as "regrettable."
Meanwhile, Coupang swung to a net loss in the second quarter from a year earlier due to fines related to a massive data breach.
In the three months that ended in June, the U.S.-listed company shifted to a net loss of 865 billion won (US$570 million) from a net profit of 43.5 billion won in the same period last year, it said in a press release.
Coupang, which generates most of its revenue from its Korean operations, has faced strong public backlash following the disclosure of a data breach in November 2025 involving more than 37 million customers.